Derby County Women will make the short journey across Brian Clough Way to face local rivals Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on Sunday afternoon (2pm kick-off).
dcfc.co.uk
has brought together all the key information you will need to know
ahead of the FA Women's National League Northern Premier Division
fixture.
Manager's Thoughts...
Manager Sam Griffiths believes there’s still plenty of room for improvement despite seeing her side pick up two wins from their last three matches in all competitions.
A 7-1 win over Stourbridge in the league and a 5-0 rout of Doncaster Rovers Belles in the National Plate in recent weeks has seen the Ewes get into a winning groove after starting the season with three successive losses.
Sandwiched inbetween those wins was the narrow 1-0 loss against promotion hopefuls Newcastle United on home turf, despite a resilient showing from the Ewes.
Forest are expected to be firmly in the promotion shake-up once again this year and Griffiths knows her side will need to put on a strong performance if they are to record a positive result against the Reds.
She said: “We got a positive result last time out at Doncaster and the girls are all happy and feeling good going into the match.
“What we have to be mindful of is that if we play like we did against Doncaster in the National Plate against Forest, will we get the result? Probably not. That means we need to improve and be better, which we always want to be.
“We have our principles and how we want to play and those won’t change; we will stick by them. We just need to finalise how we want to set up against Forest and what our game plan will be.”
From The Dressing Room...
Midfielder Emelia Wilson believes Derby are capable of stepping up to the plate and producing a big performance at the City Ground.
The Reds are one of a number of sides expected to be competing at the very top of the league this season, but Wilson knows a positive display will give the Ewes the best possible chance of picking up all three points.
She said: "It has been a tough start to the season in the sense we've had a hard run of fixtures against top sides.
"It is another game but we know it is a big occasion too. I do believe we can turn up and in this league it is about who turns up on the day.
"Anyone can be anyone and if we turn up and are at our best then I do believe it'll give us a real chance of getting the result that we want."
Defender Sarah Jackson believes the Ewes can go into Sunday’s game in a positive frame of mind.
Reflecting on the team’s one win and three defeats in the league this term, Jackson believes Derby’s performances have warranted a better points return so far.
However, last weekend’s 5-0 rout of Doncaster Rovers in the National Plate and their recent 7-1 thrashing of Stourbridge to get their first league win of the season on the board have built up confidence within the camp.
Looking ahead to the clash with Forest, Jackson said: “Winning games is massive for confidence.
“We’ve dropped a few points in the league games so far, sometimes undeservedly after some good performances, so this game was a chance to build the confidence because we’ve deserved more than what we’ve had this season.”
The Season So Far...
Derby County Women have one win and three defeats to their name in the league so far this term. They started the season with a 2-1 home defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers, before bowing out of the League Cup at the Determining Round stage with a 4-2 loss on home turf against West Bromwich Albion.
A 3-2 loss at Liverpool Feds was then followed up with a 7-1 hammering of Stourbridge in their last away game a fortnight ago, prior to losing 1-0 to promotion favourites Newcastle United at the Don Amott Arena last time out in the league.
Derby will, however, head to Forest in good spirits following their 5-0 away win at Doncaster Rovers Belles in the First Round of the National League Plate last weekend.
Match Highlights...
Full highlights from Sunday's match will appear online on dcfc.co.uk following the final whistle.
